Before He Had a Chance
by ncismka233
Summary: During a routine investigation, Tony and Gibbs are abducted. Gibbs/Tony Father/Son
1. Chapter 1

It was a dark and cold winter night in Arlington, Virginia. In a small and dark apartment, a young man who appeared to be in his early thirties was sleeping on the couch while local news played on the TV in front of him on mute. The young man slowly opened his eyes when the ring of his cell phone woke him up. He looked at the caller ID and smiled at the sight of his wife's name.

"Hey honey … I was just sleeping … it's okay don't worry about it. When are you coming home … alright I'll pick you up around 1300 … love you too bye Sarah." The young man hung up his phone then turned the TV off of mute. He watched the news for a few seconds before he was interrupted by a knock on the door. The young man put the TV back on mute and got up.

"Who could be visiting me after midnight?" The man thought to himself. He looked through the peep hole on the door and saw a man clutching his stomach while wincing in pain. He opened the door and asked,

"Can I help you sir?"

"Call 911!" The man said. He slowly moved his hand away from his stomach and held it up. The man's hand and stomach were covered in blood. The man clutched his stomach harder then fell to the ground.

Around 0630, Special Agent Timothy McGee stepped out of the elevator with his backpack on and a cup of coffee in his hands. He slowly and tiredly walked to his desk. McGee set his bag on the floor and coffee on his desk before he collapsed into his office chair. He crossed his arms on the desk as his head started to fall in that direction.

"Tired McGee?" McGee jumped and sat back up in his chair. He opened his eyes and saw Ziva staring at him from her desk.

"Wh … when did you get here?" McGee asked.

"0500. What has you so tired this morning?" Ziva replied. McGee rubbed his eyes while saying,

"Ah … I was up all night working on my book. My deadline is less than a month away."

"What chapter are you on?"

"Seven and I need at least three more." McGee said as the elevator opened. Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo stepped out of the elevator.

"You better not be writing about us again Probie."

"I've told you guys a million times; the book is not about you."

"So we've heard." Gibbs said as he entered the squad room.

"What do we got boss?"

"A dead marine in Arlington. McGee go gas the truck."

"Okay." McGee pulled himself out of the chair and walked away.

"DiNozzo, David, let's go."

"On your six boss." Tony said as he followed Ziva and Gibbs to the elevator. Once they reached the garage, they walked to the car.

"Where's McGee?" Gibbs said as he looked around the garage. Tony walked to the back of the van and saw McGee sleeping in the back. He raised his eyebrows and said,

"He's right here boss." Gibbs walked up to Tony and looked in the back. He smirked and said,

"Let him sleep." Gibbs closed the trunk and got in the car with Tony and Ziva.


	2. Chapter 2

Once the NCIS van came to a stop, the team got out to start the investigation.

"DiNozzo get McGee." Gibbs said to Tony as he walked into the apartment complex.

"You got it." Tony walked around to the back of the van and opened the trunk. He saw McGee still asleep.

"Let's go Probie!" Tony yelled. McGee startled awake and looked around, confused.

"Wh … what I miss?"

"We're at the crime scene probie and Gibbs is waiting." Tony said. McGee grabbed his bag and followed Tony into the complex. Tony and McGee walked up to the first apartment where the rest of the team and the body were. The man appeared to be in his late thirties, had blonde hair, looked physically fit and was covered in blood.

"Have a nice rest McGee?" Ziva asked. McGee looked up at her and said,

"Uh, yeah sure." He rubbed his eyes and then caught a glimpse of Gibbs staring at him. He stopped rubbing his eyes and grabbed his sketch pad out of his bag.

"I'm gonna start sketching the scene." He said.

"Where's Ducky?" Gibbs asked. Tony and Ziva looked at him with an 'I don't know' face.

"Right here Jethro." Ducky said as he and Palmer came around the corner. "Who do we have here?"

"According to his ID, this is Corporal Bradley Kennard." Tony replied. "He's stationed at Quantico boss."

"Ziva take the witness's statement." Gibbs said.

"Alright." Ziva said as she walked into the apartment. Gibbs turned to Ducky and asked,

"What do you got Duck?"

"The defensive wounds on the corporal's hand indicate that he was in a fight prior to his demise. Also there are multiple stab wounds on the abdomen and a single stab wound on the back of his neck."

"You got a time of death?"

"I would say around eight hours ago Jethro." Ducky said.

"Alright thank you Mr. Leighton." Ziva said as she came out of the apartment. Mr. Leighton nodded his head and closed the door. "Mark Leighton said he just finished talking to his wife on the phone when Corporal Kennard showed up at his door. He called 911 but by the time the paramedics got here, Kennard was already dead."

"Yes he wouldn't have lasted very long based on the depths of these stab wounds to the abdomen." Ducky said as he and Palmer pulled the gurney up. "I'll know more once I get the Corporal to autopsy." The team made their way back to NCIS and started investigating the murder of Corporal Kennard. McGee and Tony were on their computers and Ziva was on the phone.

"Alright thank you very much … only if we have any more questions …why would eggs be in a basket?" Ziva said as she talked to Mark Leighton's wife. Tony looked up at her.

"Hang up before she thinks you're an idiot." He said. Ziva listened to Ms. Leighton talk a few more seconds before she hung up. Gibbs came into the squad room holding a cup of coffee.

"What do we got?" He asked. Tony grabbed the clicker as he got up and walked to the plasma next to Gibbs.

"Corporal Bradley Kennard has been stationed at Quantico for eleven months. He's married but has no kids. Since enlisting he's had three misdemeanor charges. One was in 99' for public intox, second was in 02' for possession of marijuana, and third was last for another public intox."

"Sounds like he had a problem with drugs and alcohol." Gibbs said.

"Sure did but he never seeked help." Tony said. Gibbs looked at McGee and asked,

"What about bank statements?"

"Kennard's accounts show no unusual activity but he has multiple phone calls from one number."

"Who's it registered to?" Gibbs asked. McGee searched the number and got a result in less than five seconds.

"The number is registered to a Michael Thorn."

"McGee get his address."

"On it."

"Ziva, what do you got?" Gibbs asked.

"I talked to Mark Leighton's wife; she confirmed that she called him right before Kennard showed up."

"Boss I got an address on Thorn." McGee said. He wrote it down and handed it to Gibbs. Gibbs read the address and said,

"McGee do a background check on Thorn." Gibbs said.

"You got it." McGee said as he turned to his computer.

"Ziva call Kennard's wife." Gibbs said as he grabbed his badge and gun. "DiNozzo, you're with me."

"On your six, boss." Tony said as he grabbed his stuff. Tony ran to the elevator after Gibbs trying to get in before the doors closed. Ziva watched as Tony slipped through the doors. She turned to look at McGee.

"McGee, why would eggs be in a basket?" She asked still confused at what Mark Leighton's wife said to her. McGee looked up from his computer and gave Ziva a confused look. In the elevator, Gibbs and Tony were waiting for the elevator to reach autopsy.

"You know the saying; put your eggs in one basket." Tony said to Gibbs.

"Mhm." Gibbs said as he took another sip of his coffee.

"Ziva wants to know why eggs would be in a basket." Tony said. Gibbs smirked as the elevator doors opened to autopsy. Ducky looked up from examining the body when he heard the doors swish open.

"Ah, Jethro just in time."

"What am I, chopped liver?" Tony asked in a joking tone. Ducky chuckled as he said,

"Of course not, Tony. Chopped liver is actually a very popular spread among Jewish people. It is made by sautéing or …"

"Duck." Gibbs interrupted. "The case."

"My apologies. According to his tox screen ,Corporal Kennard's blood alcohol level was 1.2. By the looks of his liver, I can say for certain that he had a drinking problem." Ducky said. Tony looked over at the x-rays and saw the Corporal's knee had a line running across it.

"Hey Ducky, what's this?" Tony asked as he ran his finger along the line. Gibbs and Ducky walked over.

"That, Anthony is an old stab wound. Whoever previously stabbed Corporal Kennard in the knee is the person who is responsible for his death."

"How do know for sure?" Tony asked.

"Because it was done with the same blade and same exact cutting pattern."

"Thanks Duck." Gibbs said as he and Tony walked out of autopsy. When they got back in the elevator, Gibbs noticed Tony looked more tired than usual. He didn't give it much concern since they had been working late a lot.

"Where to, Abby's or the sedan?" Tony asked Gibbs. Gibbs pressed a button and said,

"Abby's." Once they reached their floor, Tony and Gibbs walked into the room with music playing. They saw Abby bopping her head to the music when they walked in. Gibbs grabbed the remote to Abby's boom box and turned the music off. Abby turned around to Gibbs and said,

"Gibbs, what did I say about turning my music off?"

"What did you find Ab?" He asked. Abby smiled as she turned back to her computer.

"I found traces of a lot of drugs in the Corporal's blood sample. His medical records said he had stomach ulcers two weeks ago but don't say anything about treatment. If he was force fed or had the drugs injected into him, it would've killed him in five minutes."

"Get Ducky on that." Gibbs said pointing to the camera. Abby pressed the button and within a second, she saw Ducky reading a file at his desk.

"Hi Ducky." Abby said. Ducky looked up and said,

"Abby, what can I do for you?"

"Talk to Gibbs, he has a question for you." Abby said as she slid to the side.

"Did you notice any needle marks on Kennard?" Gibbs asked.

"As a matter of fact, I did. There were a few on his abdomen and multiple on his left arm. Whoever delivered them is a pro." Ducky said.

"Thanks Duck. Let's go, Tony." Gibbs said as walked out of the room with Tony following him. Abby turned her music back on and breathed a huge sigh of relief.


	3. Chapter 3

It took Tony and Gibbs a half hour to get to the address McGee pulled on Kennard. They pulled up to a small ranch house. As the agents walked up to the door, they drew their guns just in case anything happens. Gibbs knocked on the door loudly. When Gibbs heard no response, he nodded to Tony indicating that he could now kick the door down. Tony kicked the door in then he and Gibbs swept the house for anyone who might be in it.

"Clear." Gibbs said loudly from the kitchen as he put his gun away.

"Clear." Tony yelled from the back. Tony and Gibbs put gloves on and started to look around for anything that might help their investigation. Back at NCIS headquarters, Ziva was up in the conference room with Corporal Kennard's wife.

"So Ms. Kennard, has your husband been acting different at all lately?" Ziva asked.

"Kind of, he's been on the phone a lot more than usual." She said with tears in her eyes.

"Did you ever ask him about it?" Ziva asked.

"I did, all he told me was that he was having a problem with someone."

"Did he say who he was having the problem with?"

"Someone named, Michael." She said. Ziva got up and said,

"Alright thank you." Down in the squad room McGee was on his computer. He got a result on his database search on Michael Thorn. It was a service record. McGee picked up the phone on his desk and called Gibbs. Gibbs was going through a shelf in Kennard's living room when his phone rang.

"Yeah Gibbs."

"Hey boss I just found a service record on Michael Thorn. He's a Lance Corporal and is in the same unit as Kennard." McGee said.

"He have any charges?"

"Since enlisting he's had two misdemeanors. Last year he was arrested for assault and resisting arrest was filed too."

"Get an address on Thorn and take Ziva with you. Thanks McGee." Gibbs hung up. "DiNozzo."

"Yeah boss." Tony yelled from the back of the house.

"You find anything?" Gibbs asked. Tony walked into the living room holding a piggy bank.

"I found this." Tony said as he emptied the piggy bank. Gibbs saw at least five syringes fall out.

"Syringes." Gibbs picked one up and said, "Bag and get them to Abby." Once Tony and Gibbs were done at Kennard's house they headed back to the squad room. Tony set his bag behind his desk and walked down to Abby's lab with the bag of syringes. Gibbs walked over to McGee's desk and asked,

"What do you got McGee?"

"All Ziva and I found at Thorn's house worth mentioning was a safe and this computer chip." McGee said.

"What's on it?"

"Pictures, pictures of his family and friends."

"What are these?" Gibbs asked pointing at the corner of one of the pictures. McGee looked closer and said,

"Those are dates. Pictures usually have the date they were taken on them."

"One problem with that, it's only 2004 and the year on this says 09."

"It's probably a code then." McGee said.

"Find out what." Gibbs said as he walked away. He went to get a caf-pow and then headed to Abby's lab.

"Abby, how is this going to help you think?" Tony asked. He was holding Abby's feet while she stood on her head.

"Well I haven't been able to get a caf-pow cause I've been busy running tests."

"What do you got, Abbs?" Gibbs asked as he walked in. When he saw Tony holding Abby by her feet, he stopped and asked,

"What the hell are you two doing?" Tony looked at Gibbs then back at Abby and let go of her feet. Abby got back on her feet and said,

"I told Tony to hold my feet while I did a handstand because I didn't get a chance to get a caf-pow." Gibbs handed her the caf-pow he had.

"God bless you." Abby said as she walked over to her computer. "The syringes you guys found at Kennard's house definitely had traces of drugs in them. I found Morphine, Heroin, Oxycodone, Methadone, and Codeine."

"All are depressants." Gibbs said.

"Yup, the drugs are most likely what killed him."

"Thanks Abby." Gibbs said. Before Tony and Gibbs left, Abby said,

"Wait Gibbs I have more." Gibbs walked back over to the plasma while Tony went back to the squad room.

"I pulled a fingerprint off of one of the syringes and got a match from the crime database. It belongs to Chelsea Kennard."

"Corporal Kennard's wife?" Gibbs asked.

"Yup, in 2002 she was charged with assault and was jailed for eight months." Abby said. Gibbs smiled then kissed Abby on the cheek and said,

"That's good work Abby." Back in the squad room, McGee was concentrated on his computer, Ziva was on the phone, and Tony was throwing crumpled up paper into the trash can at McGee's desk.

"Alright thank you." Ziva said. She hung up the phone and watched Tony throw paper into the trash.

"Tony, does what you're doing have a purpose?" Ziva asked.

"Of course it does. I'm working on my concentration skills." Tony replied as he kept throwing. He saw that McGee looked very focused on something that was on his computer.

"Find something McGee?" He asked. When McGee ignored him, Tony threw a wad of paper at McGee.

"Tony!" McGee said annoyed.

"Stop ignoring me." Tony said. He crumbled up another piece of paper and bent his arm back. Tony was about to throw the paper wad at McGee but was stopped by hand that firmly gripped his wrist. He slowly moved his head up because he knew who was behind him.

"Hey boss." Tony said when he met Gibbs' eyes. Gibbs stared at Tony as he took the paper wad out of his hand. He threw the paper wad at the top of Tony's head. Gibbs let go of Tony's wrist as he walked to his desk.

"Ziva get the corporal's wife back in here."

"Is there a reason why she needs to come back in?" She asked.

"Abby found her prints on the syringes we found."

"That's a good reason." Ziva said as she picked up her phone.

"Boss I got something here." McGee said. Gibbs walked over to McGee's desk. "I looked more in to the assault charges on Kennard's wife and found out that Chelsea Kennard assaulted her husband. She hit him multiple times with an umbrella when they were on vacation in Virginia Beach."

"That's good work McGee." Gibbs said. He patted McGee's back as he walked back to his desk.

"Gibbs, Chelsea Kennard is here." Ziva said.

"That was fast." Tony said.

"I called her cell phone, Tony. She's been in DC all day shopping." She said.


	4. Chapter 4

Tony and Ziva were in observation watching Chelsea Kennard wait for Gibbs.

"She looks nervous." Tony said.

"I agree. Now can you please tell me how you never miss the trash can when you throw the paper?" Ziva said.

"I played varsity basketball at Ohio State. I would've gone pro if I didn't bust my knee senior year." Tony said. Gibbs opened the door to interrogation and sat in front of Chelsea Kennard.

"Can you please tell me what I'm doing here, Agent Gibbs?" She asked.

"We found your prints on some syringes we found. The needle marks match the one's our ME found on your husband."

"So you think I killed Brad?"

"Did you?"

"No. I'll admit that these syringes are from the hospital that I work at."

"How did they get from the hospital to your house?"

"You found them at my house?" She asked. Gibbs glared at her until she said, "I did not kill my husband, Agent Gibbs."

"Where were you last night?"

"I was at George Washington Hospital. I'm an ER nurse." She said. Gibbs handed her a piece of paper and said,

"Give me a name and number of the doctor who was in charge last night." When Chelsea finished writing, she handed the paper to Gibbs. Gibbs got up, looked at the one way glass and motioned for Tony and Ziva to follow him. The minute Gibbs closed the door to interrogation, his phone rang.

"Yeah Gibbs."

"Boss I did a background check on Chelsea Kennard and found out that she was engaged to someone else prior to her marriage with Corporal Kennard." McGee said.

"Who was she engaged to?"

"Michael Thorn." McGee said. Gibbs hung up the phone and looked at Tony and Ziva.

"Ziva check Chelsea Kennard's alibi." Gibbs handed Ziva the paper then looked at Tony. "DiNozzo you're with me." Tony followed Gibbs down the hall. When they got back to their desks in the squad room, Tony looked up from his desk and asked,

"Where are we going?"

"Michael Thorn's house to see what McGee and Ziva missed."

"It's getting late, boss." Tony said sleepily. Gibbs stared at him until Tony said,

"I'll get coffee." Tony pulled himself up and walked away. Gibbs smiled as he watched Tony drag himself to get coffee. He turned to McGee and asked,

"You figure out that code yet?"

"I did." McGee replied. Gibbs walked over to McGee's desk and looked at his computer. "I realized that there were only three photos so I looked closer and …"

"McGee." Gibbs interrupted. McGee looked at him then Gibbs asked, "What's the code?"

"Sorry uh, I wrote it down right here." McGee handed Gibbs the paper.

"Good job McGee. Go help Abby." Gibbs said. Gibbs went back to his desk, grabbed the car keys, and walked to the elevator. Gibbs saw Tony in the elevator when the doors opened. Tony wearily looked at Gibbs as he handed him one of the coffees he was holding. Gibbs took the coffee and stepped in the elevator.

"You okay, Tony?" Gibbs asked noticing how physically tired Tony looked. Tony straightened up and said,

"Yeah why wouldn't I be?" Tony's phone rang once they reached the level to the parking lot.

"DiNozzo … thanks Ziva, I'll tell him." Tony hung up.

"Ziva says that Chelsea Kennard's alibi checked out."

"Well let's hope we can find something at Thorn's house." Gibbs said as he and Tony got into the sedan. It only took Gibbs half an hour to drive to Thorn's house. Tony studied the house as Gibbs pulled into the long drive way. He saw a small, dark, an old looking cabin surrounded by tall trees. He got out of the car and followed Gibbs to the front door.

"NCIS, open up Thorn." Tony yelled. Tony looked at the door and saw that the lock was broken and door was slightly opened. He got his gun out and motioned to Gibbs that the door was open and lock was broken. Gibbs got his gun out and kicked the door in. He ran in to check the front of the house as Tony ran to check the back of the house.

"Clear." Gibbs yelled from the kitchen. Tony was about to yell, clear too but all of a sudden someone hit him hard on the back of the head. Tony fell after being hit and landed on his head when he hit the floor. Gibbs heard a thump in the back of the house so he pulled his gun back out and ran in that direction. Gibbs looked in one of the bedrooms and saw Tony lying face down on the floor. He put his gun back and ran over to Tony.

"Tony, Tony what happened?" Gibbs asked as he tried to wake Tony up. "DiNozzo!" Gibbs kept trying to get Tony up when he was interrupted by someone hitting him hard on the back of the head. When Gibbs woke up, he looked around and saw nothing but a dark and empty room. He saw Tony who was still unconscious lying on the floor with his hands tied behind his back. Gibbs then realized that his hands were tied behind his back too. A few minutes later, Tony slowly started to regain consciousness.

"Tony!" Gibbs said nervously. Tony opened his eyes and asked,

"Boss where are we?"

"I don't know." Gibbs said while Tony used his legs to help himself get into a sitting position. All of a sudden, the door burst open and young man holding a knife walked in.

"So, who are you people and what are you doing in my house." The man asked.

"We're investigating a murder." Tony said.

"Ah a murder, the murder of whom?"

"We can't tell you that." Gibbs said in a calm tone. The man walked over to Gibbs and looked him in the eye.

"You will tell me and you know why?" The man asked sternly. Gibbs raised his eye brows at the man.

"Cause I will hurt you very bad."

"Go right ahead." Gibbs said confidently. The man smiled as he said,

"I had a feeling you might say that. I was actually going to hurt your friend over here." Gibbs looked at Tony and even though his face didn't show it, Gibbs could tell that Tony was scared. He looked back at the man and asked,

"Are you Lance Corporal Michael Thorn?"

"How the hell do know that?"

"I'll take that as a yes." Tony said. Thorn stabbed Tony's knee with a little pressure.

"Ow." Tony winced as he felt sharp and stabbing pain from the tip of the knife. Gibbs looked at Thorn with a stern look on his face and said,

"If you want to stab someone, stab me."

"You know I can't do that." Thorn said smiling. He stabbed Tony's knee harder that time which caused Tony to start bleeding. Gibbs gave Thorn an angry look then looked at Tony with concern and worry on his face. He saw that Tony was getting weaker. "Also I don't just have a knife." Thorn said as he pulled a gun out of his back pocket.

"Hey that's mine." Tony said. Thorn violently put the gun on Tony's uninjured knee and said,

"Damn right it is. I'm gonna give the two of you sometime to discuss whether or not you are going to cooperate." Thorn walked out of the room.


	5. Chapter 5

As soon as Thorn shut the door, Gibbs turned to Tony and asked,

"You okay?"

"Oh just dandy, my knee gets stabbed all the time."

"Don't be a smartass DiNozzo." Gibbs said. He moved his fingers under his belt where he kept his knife. Tony saw Gibbs take the knife out of his belt.

"I'm assuming you have a plan?" Tony asked.

"Yup." Gibbs said as he tried to cut his hands free. It only took him a few seconds before he cut his hands free from the rope. He grabbed Tony's arm and adjusted him so Tony's back was facing him.

"You wanna share?" Tony asked while Gibbs cut the rope off his hands.

"We're gonna tell him what happened."

"Why?" Tony asked as Gibbs finally cut his hands free. Gibbs stared at him until Tony said,

"Okay we'll tell him what happened."

"Keep your hands behind your back." Gibbs whispered as he put his knife back in his belt. Thorn slammed the door open. He walked over and knelt down next to Tony and placed the gun and knife back on his knee. Thorn looked at Gibbs and asked,

"Who are you?"

"I'm Special Agent Gibbs and this is my partner, Special Agent DiNozzo."

"What agency?"

"NCIS" Tony said. Thorn stabbed Tony's knee even harder this time.

"If I were you I'd let Agent Gibbs answer the questions."

"I'd vouch for that." Tony said with pain in his voice.

"Whose murder are you investigating?"

"Corporal Bradley Kennard."

"Kennard huh? You're not going anywhere so I guess I'll just say it, I killed him."

"Why?" Gibbs asked.

"I was engaged to his wife, Chelsea. Five months into our engagement, she broke it off. She told me she met someone who she thought was her soul mate. Chelsea came to me a month ago and said she was having problems with Brad. She got me some drugs and syringes from work so I could kill him."

"She helped you?" Gibbs asked.

"Yes she did."

"Were you planning on marrying her again?" Tony asked.

"That's none of your damn business." Thorn said. Gibbs pulled his knife out of his belt when he saw Thorn put his finger on the trigger. Before Thorn was able to do anything, Gibbs threw his knife at Thorn. The knife hit him directly in the chest which caused him to fall. Gibbs reached over and felt Thorn's neck trying to find a pulse. When he couldn't find a pulse, he turned his attention over to Tony who was bleeding heavily from his knees. Gibbs put his hand on Tony's shoulder and asked nervously,

"You okay?"

"No not really." Tony said with pain in his voice.

"Stay here."

"Where else would I go?" Tony asked as Gibbs ran out of the room. When Gibbs opened the door he realized that they weren't at Thorn's house anymore; they were now in a small cabin. Gibbs looked around and quickly found the kitchen. He ran into the kitchen and searched for something that could help him take care of Tony's wounds. He found a dish towel and grabbed a few other things then ran back to the room. Gibbs knelt down to Tony and cut the part of his pants off that was covering his knee with scissors he got from the kitchen. He cleaned most of the blood off of Tony's knees then but large band aids on them before any more blood could escape. Gibbs also wrapped an ace bandage on each of Tony's knees so he could walk.

"Thanks boss." Tony said with relief. Gibbs put his hand on Tony's shoulder and asked,

"Can you walk?"

"Let's see." Tony tried to get up but his knees were too weak so he fell back down. Gibbs grabbed Tony's arm and pulled him up then helped him out of the room. Gibbs lowered Tony down on to a couch that was in the living room of the house they were in. Then he searched the house for a phone so he could get a hold of Ducky, Ziva, Abby, or McGee. Gibbs was looking through a kitchen drawer when he heard Tony yell,

"Gibbs, get in here!" Gibbs shut the drawer and ran into the living room where he saw Tony lying face down on the floor, rubbing his head. Standing next to Tony was a tall man with brown hair, brown eyes, and a mustache holding a gun.

"What the hell are you people doing in my house?" He asked. Gibbs put his hands up and said,

"We were abducted and taken here."

"Abducted by whom?" He asked. Gibbs nodded his head towards the room and said,

"The guy in there."

"Stay here." The guy said. When the guy walked into the hallway, Gibbs bent over to Tony and put his hand on his shoulder.

"Tony are you okay?"

"I've been better." Tony said as he grabbed Gibbs' hand. Gibbs pulled Tony up to his feet but Tony's knees weren't stable so he fell on the couch. Gibbs was getting worried about Tony's condition. Not only was Tony injured, but Gibbs noticed he was also looking pale and getting weak. Gibbs looked at Tony then at the hallway and said,

"Let's go." Tony didn't argue he just let Gibbs help him up and get to the door. Gibbs opened the door but turned around when he heard the man yell,

"Freeze! You killed him, you killed my brother and I wanna know why." He demanded. Gibbs lowered Tony down against the door and knelt down next to him.

"He was hurting my partner and almost killed him." Gibbs said sternly. Tony looked at Gibbs and thought to himself, 'He really cares a lot about me.' The guy pointed his gun at Gibbs' head and looked Gibbs in the eye and said,

"Well now I get to kill you." He put his finger on the trigger but was stopped when all of a sudden a gunshot was fired at him. The bullet hit his neck and he fell to the floor on his back. Gibbs turned around to see who had fired their weapon and saw Ziva and McGee standing in front of the house with their weapons drawn. Both of them put their guns away and ran to Tony and Gibbs.

"Are you both alright?" Ziva asked.

"I'm fine but Tony needs Ducky, is he here?" Gibbs asked. Ziva opened her mouth to speak but Ducky came around the corner of the van before she could say anything.

"Yes Jethro, I am here." Ducky said. Ducky walked up the small set of stairs and sat down in front of Tony.

"What happened Tony?" He asked. Gibbs smiled when he knew that Tony was in good hands and would be okay. He walked over to Ziva and McGee so he could learn how they found him and Tony.

"How'd you guys find us?"

"Abby and I tracked your cell phones."

"Thorn abducted us and took them."

"He probably had them in his pocket."

"Probably?"

"I'll go check, where is Thorn boss?"

"In the guest bedroom."

"Perfect we can question him."

"The only one who's gonna get answers from him is Ducky."

"Why is that, Gibbs?"

"He's dead. He was about to shoot Tony in the knee so I killed him with my knife."

"Where'd you get a knife?"

"My belt."

"Rule number nine Ziva, never go anywhere without a knife." McGee said as he walked towards the house. Gibbs watched Ziva follow McGee into the house. He looked over at Ducky who was helping Tony get up and walked over to help. He grabbed Tony's other arm and pulled him up as Ducky said,

"Well Anthony thanks to Jethro's quick action to your wounds, you should be able to walk on your own in about a week." Tony looked at Gibbs and said,

"Thanks Gibbs." Gibbs patted Tony's back and said,

"Anytime kid." Tony smiled as Ducky and Gibbs helped him into the shotgun seat of the blue sedan. Once Tony was settled, Gibbs walked over to the driver's side. He got in the car and closed the door but rolled down the window when Ducky walked up to his side of the car.

"I assume you will be taking care of Anthony in his time of need." Ducky said. Gibbs nodded his head and said,

"Yeah he can stay at my place."

"You know how stubborn he can be so please make sure he gets some rest."

"Will do Duck. Anything else?"

"Yes he'll need help walking for the next few days since his knees are not strong enough to support his body."

"Thanks Duck."

"Anytime. We'll finish up here, you just get Tony home."

"Thanks." Gibbs said. Ducky looked at Tony and said,

"Tony." Tony looked up at Ducky. "Get some rest." Ducky ordered while pointing his finger at him. Tony smiled at him and said,

"Yes sir." Gibbs found his way out of the wooded area and drove for thirty minutes before he reached his house. Gibbs got out of the car and walked over to the passenger side. He opened the door and pulled Tony out of the car then led him into his house. Gibbs opened his front door and walked over to the couch in the living room with Tony still hanging onto his shoulder. He lowered Tony down on the couch then went upstairs to get Tony some fresh clothes. He found some sweats and headed back downstairs. He threw the sweats to Tony then sat down next to him on the couch.

"It's been one hell of a day." Tony said sleepily as he changed into the sweats. Gibbs nodded his head and said,

"Sure has. I have a question."

"Mhm?" Tony said as he put the sweatpants on over his boxer shorts.

"Why'd you lie to me?" Gibbs asked. Tony looked up at him and asked,

"About what?"

"Earlier before we left I asked if you were okay cause you look more tired than usual."

"Oh that." Tony said as he pulled the blue sweatshirt over his head. "Well I wasn't feeling well earlier but I thought that I'd eventually feel better."

"How do you feel now?"

"Uh, I'm okay." Tony said. Gibbs put his hand on Tony's forehead; it was hot and sweaty. Gibbs removed his hand and asked,

"You wanna change your answer?" Tony looked at Gibbs with his tired eyes then allowed himself to fall back on the couch and said,

"Maybe." Gibbs looked at a half-asleep Tony and got up from the couch to help Tony get upstairs to the guest bedroom. He knelt down and put Tony's arm over his shoulder then pulled him up and started to make his way upstairs. Tony opened his eyes when he felt himself being sat down on a bed. He looked around the room and saw that he was at Gibbs' house in the guest room. Tony saw Gibbs standing next to the bed and pulling down the covers and propping up the pillow.

"Thanks for letting me stay here Gibbs." Tony said. Gibbs smiled as he watched Tony get under the covers and make himself comfortable.

"Anytime Tony." Gibbs said. He ruffled Tony's hair then walked towards the door. When Gibbs reached the door, he turned around as he put his hand on the knob. He smiled when he saw Tony's eyes closed; Gibbs could tell that he was drifting off to sleep. Gibbs opened the door and walked to his room which was just across the hall so he could get some sleep himself. By the time Gibbs had changed and gotten into bed, Tony was fast asleep.


End file.
